“Thirteen people were killed and 14 others injured when a suicide bomber targeted the house of Shinwari”, said Khogyani in statement on behalf of the governor of Nangarhar province, of which Jalalabad is the capital.
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The roadmap would include “who do they want to talk to, on what timetable, what incentives are to be offered, and what kind of action will be taken with those people who want to talk and those who do not want to talk”, the official said.
The ever volatile Jalalabad, situated 118 kilometers east of capital Kabul, came under attack Wednesday after a deadly bomb and gun siege, claimed by the Islamic State group, killed seven Afghan troops in an attempted Pakistani consulate raid. The first meeting was held in Islamabad last week. The Taliban, which now controls or contests more territory than at any time since it was ousted by a U.S.-led intervention in 2001, will not attend the talks.
The group will discuss a roadmap for the reconciliation process involving the Afghan government and Taliban.
The Taliban denied responsibility for the bombing, which also left 13 people wounded on the eve of a new round of four-country negotiations aimed at restarting peace talks with the insurgents.
The official was not authorized to speak with reporters about the talks so spoke on condition of anonymity.
Some analysts hope the added presence of China and the United States may help overcome mistrust between Kabul and Islamabad, though it remains unclear when the Taliban themselves will return to the negotiating table. But the negotiations stalled when the insurgents belatedly confirmed the death of long-time leader Mullah Omar, sparking infighting within the group.
The rockets struck near Italian Embassy, injuring two security guards, a security source told Xinhua.
The Taliban have stepped up attacks on government and foreign targets in Afghanistan this winter, when fighting usually abates, underscoring a worsening security situation.
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Just over one month ago, eastern Afghanistan’s Shinwari tribe launched a self-styled uprising against rebels who support the Daesh militant group in restive parts of the province.
